California Dreamin' on such a , um, ... Autumn Day?!?!

We totes LOVE Cali❤️ We got the chance to visit Disneyland,

Govt. Open? Just kidding its Disney ;-)

California Adventure,

Universal Studios,

LA, Hollywood, Burbank,

& Venice Beach!

PHEW!!! It was kinda whirlwind but soooooo.... Fun!! I hope you had a fantabulous week too!!! TTYL❤️

"Fall"ing in <3

If you know me or follow me on FB, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, etc. then you know that Fall is my absolute fav time of year!!! Pumpkins, apples, falling leaves, cider, harvest candles and more!! What is not to like?!?!

Not to mention, one of my fav holidays... HALLOWEEN!!! 

We decided to jump start our Fall seasonal activities with an impromptu weekend jaunt to Orlando. We checked into one of our fav "home away from home" places, Hilton at Downtown Disney! ( all the perks-Transportation, extra magic hours, etc. of a Disney hotel and all the luxuries associated with Hilton including a 24hr Starbucks!!) 

After checking in, my Honey & I decided to hit the Epcot Food and Wine Festival!! Brittany & Connor opted to Park hop between Magic Kingdom, Hollywood Studios (for Fantasmic 'natch), and Epcot to round out their evening :0)

(This is an example of texts Daddy & I receive! :0) ~ Brit & Connor are going to "kill" me for sharing this pic!! Lol!!!) 

The Food & Wine Festival never disappoints!!

After partaking of delectable cuisine & spirits from all over the world we met up with the kiddos and headed back to the hotel to rest up for Universal Studios!! We had fabulous weather & enjoyed all the attractions and stole a peek at some of the "scare zones" from Halloween Horror Nights- (Universal's Annual Halloween event Brittany & I will be attending with "our crew" for Girls Weekend in about a week) 

        Think AMC's Walking Dead!!!

After having a ball at Universal we "costumed" up and headed to the one, the only, Mickeys "Not so Scary" Halloween Party!!! 

We enjoyed a wonderful dinner at Liberty Tree Tavern in the Paul Revere Room, rode the rides, watched a special "not so scary" parade (phenomenal!!) saw a spectacular "Hallo-wishes" firework extravaganza and of course Trick or Treated until bags were full and tootsies were sore!!! Lol!! Now we are home & trying to rest up for flying out Thurs. to do it all again... This time West Coast style!! California here we come!! TTYL <3

Farewell summer, Hello Autumn

We decided to take a jaunt to Chattanooga, Tn. for our last summer hurrah!! It was awesome!!!! We stayed at The Chattanooga Choo Choo Hotel

in our very own Victorian train car!!!

After settling into this cozy abode we ventured about on the extensive property

After lunching in a vintage dining car, perusing all of the shops (what unique treasures we all came home with!) exploring the museums and dining at one of our fav steakhouses ( yes Nana got the chicken LOL!!!) We decided what better way to cap off an evening than by going on a Ghost adventure!!! 

After touring a very old & historic cemetery we were sufficiently exhausted (spooked!!! LOL!!) & decided it was indeed time to retire to our awaiting train car for the evening. Our next adventure began with a hearty Cracker Barrel breakfast ( yep, more shopping!! Lol ) before heading to the Raccoon Mountain Limestone Caverns for spelunking!! 

As you can see these caverns were truly AMAZING!! They definitely did not disappoint!!! 

The happy spelunkers!!! :0)

Next on our whirlwind agenda was a quick stop to a dragon museum!! You just never know what your going to stumble upon while visiting other places!! Connor LOVES (obsessed) dragons so this was really a no-brainier.

Why yes folks even a dragon Christmas tree!!

It was great fun!! We made friends with the proprietors & promised to send them a "Duke" dragon from Dutch Wonderland to add to their collection!

Our next destination was Lake Winnepesaukah Amusement Park in Georgia.

This park is hailed as " the South's favorite amusement park & in my humble opinion is indeed the quintessential vintage summer time park on the lake!!  

After riding all of the amazing vintage rides (some from 1925!!) we opted for our end of summer final Labor Day meal of a seafood boil!!!

Yes, it has been a fabulous summer & now all eyes are on fall!! Hope your summer was fab too!!! TTYL ❤

Soooo... How've ya been :0)

I'm sorry for the absence!! Life just kinda gets BUSY!!!! :0) We have hired a new  housekeeper.

Any of you who have been through this process you know how daunting this can be. 1st. placing a good ad, then weeding through resumes, conducting phone interviews, next comes in person interviews, then deciding on just the right person to come into your home on a daily basis!!

Well Contracts signed ... we did it... Fingers crossed! So far so good! This process needed to be completed a.s.a.p. because homeschooling Connor keeps me very busy!! :0)

 

Sorry... I just had to!! LOL!!

Back to Homeschool has officially kicked off, & in a big way! Park meetings, science lab classes, Hip Hop classes (P.E.) Art classes, field trips, play dates, well you get the picture ;0) 

Chemistry class at The Lab

Hip Hop Class

We really love our Homeschool group & are very grateful that we have the opportunity to get together with such awesome people!! We have also been working on our backyard redo & we are loving it!!! So many cookouts with family & friends!! Our dogs hear the sound of the blinds on the sliding glass doors & come running!!!

Our nephew Noah chillaxin'

I don't know who loves the backyard more the dogs or us!! LOL! Vacations are a full time job for us!!! LOL!! & we take our commitment very seriously! :0) We love Disney World & couldn't  wait for the summer crowds to disappear so off we went!!! The Yacht club is one of my favs & the boat directly over to EPCOT is quite a nice feature too! After cruising through TEST TRACK ,& enjoying a scrumptious dinner at Nine Dragons in the China pavilion we decided upon the Magic Kingdom!

 

Epcot

Main St. Electrical Parade

There are so many wonderful things to see & do at Disney, I can honestly say, we never get bored of that place. This Labor Day weekend we are capping off our summer excursions by taking a jaunt to Tennessee where we will be staying in a Victorian train car at the historic Chattanooga Choo Choo Hotel!! My mom is soooo... excited to go, so with Nana in tow off we go again!! That's it for now, gotta run, time to get the car detailed before Roadtrip Labor Day Weekend 2013 begins!!! I hope you all have a wonderful long Labor Day weekend!! TTYL <3

What a Fun Full Week!

Our whirlwind week began with Connor attending one of his "best dudes", Jamison, bday party... He had a blast!!! Monday it was Brit's turn, she hosted a girly sleepover with the bestie, Diamond. Tuesday we bid Diamond farewell then Brittany, Connor, & I picked Nana up and met Daddy for a delicious fun dinner out. After dinner Daddy & Connor had to make a hasty exit in order to attend a Boy Scout get together in which they launched rockets!!! Wednesday we met up with Aunt Amy, cousin Noah, Aunt Kristy, & Daddy❤ for a fabulous Italian lunch outing!! It was great to catch up over a delish meal. Thursday, it was time for Brittany to host a Tea party luncheon for a few friends, the "luncheon" continued until around 11 p.m.!!!! LOL!! That's what happens when girls get together! Friday brought about a day of planning our fall schedule, in my Lily Pulitzer planner natch!! ;-)

 

I can't believe summer is almost over & school is on the horizon. Brittany is continuing her psychology studies (year 2!) with The University of Edinburgh and Connor is going to be very busy entering 4th. grade!! We homeschool & belong to several homeschool groups, our fav group is Palm Beach County Homeschoolers Inc. which offers a HUGE variety of activities. Everything from clubs, field trips, stage productions, science fairs, to soccer, parties, and park days. We have quite a full calendar shaping up! Our week was capped off by tackling a patio/yard make over for the weekend, new outdoor dining furniture, umbrella, and seating group, also a new grill.  We have a beautiful stainless steel gas grill but I have been craving a good old fashioned charcoal cookout, so you guessed it!! Daddy surprised us with a new charcoal grill (to partner with, not replace his gas grill, I was informed LOL!!) a new trampoline & some pretty flowers then voila!! patio/yard makeover complete!!! We've really been enjoying our outdoor space redo, hope you have been enjoying all of your endeavors too!! TTYL ❤